Other stuff

Search

August 17, 2017

So the Howard County Times has weighed in on the removal of Confederate monuments. And, it's against that activity! I'm not all that surprised. I think the person who writes the editorials for the Times has been the same person for decades. And I think that person has been an outlier and not reflective of Howard County's values, also, for decades. In fact, I think Steve Bannon said it best when he referred to that person as "a clown".

Here's the thing. The Confederacy is part of our heritage and our history. ALL of our heritage. ALL of our history. I believe that history has to be preserved and remembered, lest it be relived. So completely washing over the fact that the Confederacy existed? No, sorry. Not in favor of that.

However-- we as a society have a right to decide what is proper for display in our community at any given point in time. And if the community decides that Confederate monuments are not appropriate for community viewing, or, may be appropriate for community viewing at a particular place-- say, at a museum or some other historic place-- I'm OK with that, It's for the community to decide.

And I'm fine with, absent an election or some sort of public gathering, our elected officials speaking for the community. In the case of Howard County, the County Executive and County Council have apparently agreed to find a new home for the County's Confederate monument. And that is perfectly fine with me.

So in short, however the will of the people is expressed, I'm OK with the will of the people prevailing in this case. And if that falls upon local elected officials, so be it. Who could have a problem with that?

Apparently, the President of the United States. Oh well. I mean, someone of consequence? Although vaporizing the planet is of consequence. Hmmmm. Wow. That one's a head scratcher.

August 15, 2017

Once again, I ask you, True Believers, to come through for me, and once again, dutifully, reliably and honorably, you respond and you deliver! Monday's blog party that I'm co-hosting with Peyton Manning's #1 and only fan, Scott Ewart, is currently boasting over 100 tickets sold! I'm hoping for tickets to get up to about the 125 mark in advance of Monday's event. And, of course, tickets are free! For those of you who just don't know, the event is Monday, August 21 from 5:30 to 7:30 at Bare Bones in Ellicott City. And you can sign up for the event here. I look forward to seeing and meeting and speaking with you there! It's gonna be fun. Be sure to say to Scott, "Eli and Archie are both better."

And now-- hey, folks, anything going on in the country? The world?

It's kind of a pathetic state of affairs when the lead news event of the day is the President of the United States totally becoming unglued at a news conference. And I do mean unglued. Presidents as long as I can remember have shown their temper from time to time. For effect, mostly: rarely have I seen a President TRULY angry. And never not in control.

Today's press conference showed that this President can break through those first two barriers like a hot knife through butter and came dangerously close to breaking the third. And mind you, my standard for the third barrier is extremely high. It would consist of cussing out the media or some group of people or some enemy or some politician.

I really don't know where to start. I feel sad for my friends who are Republicans, because I really don't think this man's views on race and specifically, bigotry reflect theirs. I truly don't mind fussing and arguing about policy issues-- frankly, that's nothing compared to this.

I truly hope that some solid Republican-- John Kasich, anyone?-- has the testicular fortitude to run against this fool. I might switch parties to help on his campaign. Or hell, I might not switch parties to work on his campaign. This has suddenly and drastically become, within these last few days, a situation where an American can no longer look at the Office of the Presidency-- note, I said the office, not the officeholder-- as one of the highest respect and regard. That's pathetic and pitiful and the current holder of the highest office in the land is a petulant child who obviously didn't get his ass kicked enough as a kid. Or has some other frustration. Or frustrations. Regardless, this person must go. At this point I scarcely care what comes after him.

I don't know what the other side is. Being a hateful racist is not a side. There are standards for society in this country and violent racism is outside of those standards. It is simply illegitimate. And being hateful towards someone because they are: white, black, brown, yellow, red, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist, Shinto, Pagan, Wiccan, agnostic, atheist, male, female, heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, sapiosexual, queer, transgender, polyamorous, old, young, or any other criteria is wrong. And is outside of acceptability. There is no moral equivalency.

You know, I've always thought of the President--regardless of whether I agreed with him on an issue, or voted for him-- to be someone representative of where we are at this particular point in American history. I just don't feel that way anymore. And yeah, I get it-- Dems shoulda ran maybe more candidates and there shoulda been no stupid superdelegates and Hillary coulda maybe just went to the midwest some more. But, holy crap. They say we get the leadership we deserve. Did we deserve today?

So I close with reporting a couple small victories and an update. My update is that the head of the Howard County NAACP informed me through a response to my comment on a Facebook post that the County Executive was invited to Sunday's rally, but declined due to another commitment. Mr. Flowers was satisfied by that response, and so I'll be too.

And in light of the events in Charlottesville last weekend, looks like the County Council and County Executive started to make plans to move the Confederate monument at the Howard County Circuit Courthouse, likely to the very nearby confines of the Howard County Historical Society. Yay.

Speaking of monuments and stuff, I'm still looking for those very concerned and upset Sons/Daughters of the Confederacy or whatever historical preservation group it was that was protesting peacefully in Charlottesville against the removal of the Robert E. Lee statue. Because all I've seen in every news source of every strip from Friday night in Charlottesville was of jerks carrying tiki torches, chanting Nazi slogans.

I'm done tonight. Just disgusted. But I'll be back cause I'm tough like that. Good night and have a nice Wednesday!

August 13, 2017

One week from Monday, August 21, two once in a lifetime events will happen. One will be the 80% total eclipse that will be visible that afternoon in these parts. You owe it to yourself to check out the 80% totality-- safely, of course. In fact, I know many people who will journey next week to the zone of 100% totality!

And speaking of 100% totality, the off the hookness shall achieve 100% totality on Monday the 21st from the hours of 5:30pm to 7:30pm, as Scott Ewart and I co-host the latest, and greatest, Howard County Blog Party! For bloggers, blog readers, people who like blogs, people who hate blogs, candidates for office, elected officials, sociopaths, extroverts, introverts, and also...... YOU!!! If you don't attend this party you are guaranteed to absolutely hate yourself for at least the rest of this calendar year. So don't be self hating! Attend the blog party on the 21st. RSVP here so we know how much to demand of Bare Bones in terms of preparing food. And prepare it they will!

OK, dialing it back down now to talk about some serious stuff. This has been one hell of a weekend for our country. Who knew that it would be possible for the SECOND biggest story of the week to be a threatened nuclear war? But instead, the horrific events in Charlottesville Saturday happened and somehow knocked Kim Jong Crazypants off the top story.

I find it perfectly horrible that in 2017 we still have a serious racial divide in this country. And I find it unconscionable that in 2017, white supremacists are committing terrorist acts upon their fellow Americans. This is not First Amendment. I was jokingly texting with a friend Saturday morning about Friday night's rally in Charlottesville. Because, OK, I think white supremacists are knuckleheads, but I still defend their right to assemble and speak up about what they believe in.

But when stuff gets violent, people are injured and damn it, killed, that's horrible. There was no need for violence against another person and all of it is wrong. That said, it would appear that the white supremacists were the aggressors and to me, that (no pun intended) trumps First Amendment rights. You have a First Amendment right to assemble and speak, not to beat people with pipes, kick them to the curb, and run them down with cars.

As fortune would have it, Sunday was the monthly Black Lives Matter vigit in downtown Columbia, just north of Columbia Mall. Today's vigil was really something, as I would guess between 400 and 500 people attended. (If Fatimah Waseem were still writing for the Sun, she'd say "about 100".) But in reality-- yeah, I'd say closer to 500 than 400.

Here's a brain bender about today's vigil, which obviously had a very Charlottesville-oriented theme. Where were any Republican elected officials or candidates? The County Executive did issue a good statement in light of the Charlottesville events yesterday. And his theme on his campaign page is "People, not politics"! And of course, there is that cross-cultural game-changing initiative that has transformed all of our lives and made Howard County a Utopia beyond compare! Speaking of course of #OneHoward.

Looks like it could use some updating.

This is becoming a trend. Look, I can get why Republicans don't want to come to a Black Lives Matter protest. To be honest, I don't go every month. But anyone with half a brain and certainly, any political sense shoulda known that getting there today was important. Especially since so many Republicans, from Governor Hogan to every prominent Congressional Republican, have denounced yesterday's events as bigotry and/or white supremacist-driven domestic terrorism.

Of course, local Republicans care more about the finish line than their starting blocks. And I guess by putting forth many candidates with Asian heritage and/or connections, the local Republicans are hoping to access money sentiment that they do care about diversity. They do care about immigration, for example-- but not the type those crazies on the Left espouse.

Ummmm, good luck with that? But I may be wrong. Time will tell. All I know is, if you want to go to unify the community, you wanna walk the walk, not just talk the talk-- you go to where people are assembled and worried and concerned and upset. Today was an opportunity missed for local Republicans. And there's not enough talk of 50-year-old lunch counters that's gonna make it better. I love how local Republicans trade in fables.

August 09, 2017

Dorsey's Search is a pleasant village. In fact, I even rented an apartment there for a year during my separation. There have been some good people, thinking now of Tom O'Connor and Tom Coale, who have represented that village in the CA board wisely and honorably. Which is why it's so, so sad to see the quality plummet to the low, low level now personified by the current CA Board Representative, a particularly noxious human being named Dick Boulton. If anyone here on this page would like to espouse Mr. Boulton's virtues to me, I'm all ears. Because I can't find any. But maybe he donates bone marrow to kids with cancer or does some other noble act of which I'm not aware. Because his behavior Monday night was far from noble and unbecoming and unworthy of a steward of Columbia.

So I attended the joint CA/Inner Arbor Trust Board meeting Monday, as I had mentioned on Sunday. It was a well-attended meeting-- some had mentioned my blog post has their reason for attending-- and, not to my surprise, not all the attendees were fans of the Inner Arbor. And, OK-- I get that. There is a cultural thing in Columbia where, if you don't get your way, you keep trying to fight to get your way, somehow. And sure, people like Cy Paumier, he of the alternate plan for Symphony Woods, were in attendance. And anti-progress CA Board members like Alan Klein, and Dick were there. (Incidentally, I thought it was cute that Alan was wearing a "Save Symphony Woods" t-shirt. Because, thanks to the Inner Arbor, Symphony Woods was saved!)

Inner Arbor President and CEO Nina Basu gave a very informative and useful presentation as to what's been going on in the park over the past several months , especially since the opening on April 22. Mind you, this facility hasn't even been open for four months. And it is co-located with Merriweather Post Pavilion, which makes concurrent, competing programming impossible. Nevertheless, in this, it's inaugural season, the Chrysalis has hosted a groundbreaking, a concert to celebrate said groundbreaking, the Merriweather 50th birthday party, an orchestra concert, big band concert, Books in the Woods, the unveiling of the Adirtondack Chairs, a play event, a bluegrass concert-- about an event every 10 days. And I may be forgetting a couple things. That's pretty good.

Ahhh, but not to Dick. According to Dick, the plan for the park isn't thought out, it's a failure, it'll never work, blah blah de blah de blah. Really ridiculous stuff. I really didn't mind the critical comments that Alan Klein made during the presentation. But this man Boulton's-- and calling him a "man" may be too strong, because my family raised me to believe that men don't lie-- venom was inappropriate and uncalled for.

During the resident speakout portion of the agenda, I took the opportunity to take the microphone and call Dick out for his silly comments. It's clear to me that all this person wants is for this project to fail. This is the same behavior on the CA Board which has embarrassed this town for decades and frankly, this is why the CA Board can't be entrusted with nice things. This is why HoHu runs amok over the CA Board. This is why the CA Board was almost totally inert in terms of having a position on downtown Columbia redevelopment. Narrow-minded, shallow, mean behavior like this.

I'm all in favor of rational, fact-based critique and criticism. But I call on the CA Board to aspire to proper standards-- what John McCain called, "regular order" as pertains to the US Senate. The time for the approach toward community affairs that is taken by Dick Boulton is past. He's a bully whose rude, mean-spirited, ill-intended comments are supported by no facts, simply his own, boorish opinions. Let's hope that someone better does Dorsey's Search and Columbia a favor and defeat him for re-election at the next opportunity.

August 06, 2017

As folks know, I do volunteer work for the Inner Arbor Trust, the nonprofit that is making incredible things happen in Symphony Woods. This is the group that got the Chrysalis built!

The Chrysalis has been a very welcome Addition to Columbia's cultural and community scenes, but in my travels around town, there remain many people who don't even know it's there. To be fair, the Chrysalis did only open three and a half months ago. But the story of the Chrysalis and of the Trust is a great one and the community is very fortunate to have these great, dedicated volunteers working on its behalf!

Of course, there are still naysayers and negative neighbobs who don't want to see the success of the Chrysalis continue, who want to keep Symphony Woods cold and bland and unwelcoming. These people are fortunately a minority of our community but they exist.

Tomorrow night you'll get to learn more about the terrific future that is in store for Symphony Woods, you are certain to meet a few of said nattering neighbobs of negativity, and you'll get to see YOUR Columbia Association Board in action to boot!

This all goes down starting at 7pm in the main boardroom at CA Headquarters. what "this" will be will be the regularly-scheduled meeting of the boards of the Inner Arbor Trust and the Columbia Association. I have softball games scheduled so I can't be there at the start, but I will be along. It's a great opportunity to see local affairs happen, in a different forum and context than you would get at, say, a County Council hearing.

August 02, 2017

Hey everyone! I'd like to encourage one and all to attend this year's edition-- the 72nd-- of the Howard County Fair, to be held at the Howard County Fairgrounds August 5 through 12.

Why should you go to the Fair? A multitude of reasons, including:

-- Judged competitions on items from livestock to crafts to blueberry pie!

-- Demolition derbies on August 9th and 12th!

-- Pro rodeo on August 7th!

-- Musical acts galore!

-- Rides!

-- Fried Oreos!

-- Parades on August 5th and 12th!

-- And much, much more!

I've always enjoyed the county fair. Have to admit, not a big Maryland State Fair fan-- basically because I don't see anything at the Maryland State Fair I don't see at the Howard County Fair. Except for horse racing. And I don't go to the Fair to see that.

If you haven't been before, you should go. If you've been there before, don't miss it!

July 29, 2017

I kick off this edition of the Saturday Evening Post, Howard County, MD edition, by informing you that Scott Ewart of the ScottE Blog and I are co-hosting HoCo's biggest, baddest, and most boisterous Howard County Blog Party! Geared squarely at bloggers, those who read blogs, those who like blogs, those who hate blogs, those who are indifferent about blogs, and people who hold, are seeking, or considering running for office. In fact, not just should anyone with a Twitter, Instagram or even MySpace account attend. This event will be mandatory attendance for anyone who's curious about their community.

This incredibly timely, fun, informative event will be held Monday, August 21st from 5:30 to 7:30 at Bare Bones Grill and Brewery, 9150 Baltimore National Pike (aka US40), Ellicott City, MD 21042. The event is free to attend but you really oughtta RSVP so we can tell the restaurant how much food to prepare. That's right-- you know I don't do things halfway! There will be a free happy hour buffet as well as double happy hour savings-- that's $2 off drinks-- for registrants. So what are you waiting for? Oh, the link? It's here!

This weekend marks the one-year anniversary of the flooding in downtown Ellicott City. I recall where I was; at the Billy Joel concert at Nationals Park, and while the concert was in delay, my Facebook was showing me posts of there being water rescues on Main Street. At the time I thought maybe a couple people hydroplaned and/or just didn't know how to drive. And, eerily, the last few days have involved occasionally strong downpours in the HoCo, especially in the Ellicott City area.

Although the rains of the past few days have reached nothing like the magnitude of those from last year, as of this writing Ellicott City is fine. Which is great! Let's hope the time soon comes when a rainstorm can come without our having to worry about if Ellicott City is going to flood. And for those of you who are so inclined, please stay #ECStrong.

Oh, and incidentally, is it bad form to here mention that I never got my "#ECStrong" t-short from the place I sent $24 to online when I ordered one, because they were out at the time and only taking online orders. Well, bad form or no, I didn't get it. And, take it easy-- I don't recall the name of the store that was selling them so if someone can help me out-- maybe even fill my order!-- it would be much appreciated.

And it's a hashtag that I want to take to task in my third and final point on today's blog. Remember when Governor Hogan had cancer? And remember how the hashtag #HoganStrong was used by so many people in Maryland, regardless of any dividing characteristic, to wish the Governor well? I do, and I recall wishing him well on this very blog. Cancer sucks and I can't wait, though I will likely never see, the day when all cancers are 100% curable from all stages.

Well, at the Tawes crab feast last week, I happened by the Governor's campaign "Change Maryland" bus, and while the #ChangeMaryland hashtag appeared on the bus, so too did #HoganStrong!

OK, so what the hell. In my mind, #HoganStrong has nothing to do with the Governor's political acumen or the manner in which he has led the state. If that were true, the appropriate hashtag would be #HoganDisappointment! Rather, #HoganStrong has to do with a personal issue, and I believe it's fair and fine to wish the Governor good health while not agreeing politically. I can think of many an elected official and candidate who didn't advertise their personal challenges as a reason to vote for them. Such as, every single one of them. So the fact that Governor Hogan and/or his people feel the need to break that wall is, in my view, and to coin a phrase, sad!

Of course, the Hogan Freaks will say I'm just being a sensitive, politically correct liberal. And the Hogan Freaks are clowns. So there's that.

July 23, 2017

Greetings from Sedona, Arizona! I am enjoying my vacation-- on day 4 of 6 at the moment-- and rather than write some bland, nondescript, mamby-pamby travelogue, I thought I would write a special, Sedona edition of the award-winning recurring series of posts on this blog, "Some Things I Think" Written in Larry King/USA Today lucidity?

First, to anyone who is considering coming out to this part of the country: do! Sedona is incredible. It's a town of a little over 10,000 residents (about as large as the largest Columbia villages) with a very easy road structure and three distinct areas: West Sedona, Upper Sedona and South Sedona. West Sedona is the more "everyman" part of town. Upper Sedona is the largest concentration of shops and restaurants, while South Sedona is the more ritzy froo-froo part.

The best hiking and views can be found in the Coconino National Forest between Upper and South. Awesome places like Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock, Courthouse Butte, Two Nuns Rock, and much more.

Sedona is known for its hiking, its red rocks, and it's preferred status by the New Age community. I have a personal belief that spirituality transcends religious boundaries and so I have done some investigation into the things that people in this community do. So far I have found beliefs that truly incorporate tenets of all the worlds major religions, and then some. I'm not going to go down the rabbit hole of religion though so let me just go away from that topic now.

And instead, let me give you..... this!

No, your eyes do not deceive you! Nor is this photoshop. In Sedona the Golden Arches are most decidedly green! As I understand, this happened during the zoning process to approve the McDs in Sedona. The yellow was judged to be too reflective and too bright, and so Sedona boasts one of the few sets of green arches anywhere.

The lesson here? That if a corporation wants a market badly enough, it will compromise in order to clear the barriers of entry to that market. Hmmmm, lesson locally in terms of downtown Columbia, or perhaps TIF #2 in Southeast HoCo?

Another thing I noticed here: there are a lot of solar panels here, and in plain view! There is quite the little solar panel farm outside of Sedona High School-- the home of the Scorpions! Looking at these solar panel arrays, in the open, accepted, and doing their job, make me chuckle about the Western HoCo types who are all peturbed that solar panels disturb their view of some bucolic piece of faux bourgeois farmland or, heaven forbid, a road that some Mullinix/Feaga/Warfield/etc. spit on once.

Other things:

A town of 10,000 isn't too small to become a global destination if there's a reason for people to come. The question to answer is: what the hook? I once thought that becoming the largest carbon-neutral place community on the planet would be such a hook. I still feel that way.

Lots of pride and representation by local Native American tribes. Very fascinated by that and happy for that!

Among the license plates viewed here have been some from a few Mexican states. I think it's easy, given current political discourse, to consider Mexico some global backwater, not a dynamic nation-state with a diverse economy and a highly productive workforce. And wow-- some of them even drive Mercedes and Infinitis!

I've taken the time for a couple side trips on this vacation. One was to the Grand Canyon, which contains beauty that is beyond imagination. The other was to an Arizona Diamondbacks game at Chase Field in Phoenix. The temperature was 104 at game time so the roof to Chase Field was closed. And it was an incredible experience. An indoor baseball game that didn't feel indoors. I'd definitely advise taking in a game in this ballpark if you can. I do admit, though: I stayed away from the three-foot-long corn dog that contained 3600 calories.

In Phoenix I got to see the Arizona State Capitol. It's pretty, but I like Maryland's much better.

All this time, I thought the star in the Arizona state flag was orange. But it's bronze.

And I get how Arizona is becoming a political battleground. Immigration is an issue to be sure, but also, jobs and environmental conservation are huge issues here.

I see things have been interesting in the HoCo the last several days. Was happy to see a successful first large-scale concert at the Chrysalis! Sorry I missed it but I'm sure there will be many, many more!

I might be back tomorrow evening with comment on two potential Maryland gubernatorial candidates!

July 20, 2017

Wednesday I had the distinct honor and privilege of attending the 41st Annual. J. Millard Tawes crab and clam feast in beautiful Crisfield, MD on the lower Eastern Shore. A fundraiser for the local Chamber of Commerce, the event simply known as "Tawes" doesn't just attract a thousand or so locals, it attracts politicians, political interests, activists, pundits, and of course, candidates.

I went with my son, as I am showing him the hows on becoming involved in local and state politics. The trip took a little more than three hours and was held on some lovely grounds in Crisfield. It was a sunny, hot day-- perfect for Maryland seafood and Maryland political conversation.

And the event exceeded expectations on both counts. First, the food. Oh, the crabs were heavy succulent, delicious, the mustard (yes, I'm one of those) but a little smoky, and doubtless these creatures were scurrying on the floor of the waters off Crisfield several hours prior. Similarly, the fried and raw clams had no parallel.

A ham and egger embarrassed himself on Facebook by razzing the "fine Maryland seafood" comment I made on Facebook about this event. This hapless cheesesteak chomper embarrassed seven generations prior and following of his family by that remark. Because, fact is, if it came from the Chesapeake Bay, it IS fine Maryland seafood! I don't care if it's delivered to be on cardboard trays. It was delicious.

And for side dishes, the Boardwalk fries, their sweet potato based counterpart, and most importantly, the Maryland sweet white corn were all at their best! Especially the corn-- juicy and tender!

Ahh, what of the politics? Yes, that. I did get to have substantive conversations with two of my favorite Democratic candidates for Governor-- Senator Rich Madaleno from Montgomery County and former Clinton and Obama aide Alec Ross, currently an attorney in Baltimore City. I became completely convinced that Rich Madaleno is prepared to become Governor from Day One and would be a thoughtful, progressive, innovative leader. I was similarly impressed by Alec Ross-- certainly, enough to read his book.

I also ran into a few other Maryland political notables, such as Howard County Democratic Central Committee member Jonathan Branch, Comptroller Peter Franchot, former Secretary of State John Willis, Maryland State Delegate Jeannie Haddaway, and others. HoCo didn't have a big show at Tawes this year, it seemed. I expect different in 2018. Although Cheesesteak Chomper is, sadly, a Howard Countian. I am protecting the identity because of the incredibly silly nature of the aforementioned comment.

This was my first Tawes and to answer the question if this is a political event masquerading as a crab feast or a crab feast that has become a political event, the answer is definitely more the latter. It's a four-hour return back to old-fashioned community-based politics in Maryland. A style that needs to never go away. And having attended a few of the Fifth District Democratic Club crab feasts in my time in HoCo, perhaps it's a style that can come back?

July 16, 2017

Monday, July 17th is my 50th birthday. Ironically, July 17, 1967 was also a Monday. Does that always happen, that the day of the week of someone's 50th birthday is the same day of the week as it was on the day of their birth? I don't know.

At any rate, it's been quite a run-up to the day. I have to say, turning 40 didn't bother me one little bit. Turning 30 was a bit of a thing, mostly because I perceived it as "the end of youth". But, 50?

It's fair to say that, despite the advances of modern medicine, turning 50 represents a condition where the days ahead are fewer in number than the days that have gone by. That's just reality. So then how to look at life for the next, oh, whatever number of years?

I believe my decision is to live intently, with purpose. As I assess myself at this milestone I earn things about myself that I couldn't say of myself even two years ago.

I am more measured with how, and with whom, I spend my time.

I believe in investments of my resources-- capital and energy as well as of time-- going towards useful purposes, things I believe in.

I find myself more committed to the persons and things about which I am passionate, and more willing to make a contribution to their welfare and success.

These things overlay the manner in which I live my life, which I believe few would say is bold and meandering. Look at what the first week of the rest of my life has in store:

I will be closing on my house.

I will attend my first-ever Tawes Crab Feast and Clam Bake, the go-to event of the political year in the State of Maryland.

I will leave on vacation to Sedona, Arizona. There I will hike, explore, grow mentally, physically and spiritually-- oh, and eat great food, learn about different cultures, attend a Diamondbacks vs. Nationals baseball game and see the Grand Canyon for the first time. No big whoops.

Not a bad start to year 51, as I believe my first week of year 1 included a lot of sleeping, pooping, and sucking on things.

Lots of people turn 50. I'm not special in that regard. But rather as see 50 as a turning point, an end to a phase of life, I see it as a mile marker. I see it as me being at a specific point in my journey and that I need to behave and act appropriately, but also, and most importantly, that I follow by some of the greatest Ten Words Ever Written: "This beyond all else: to thine own self be true."

Amen. That's the idea. And if I keep living by that simple principle, no way I can be unhappy with how the rest of this movie plays out. I'm looking forward to the rest of the second act and the third.